I am collecting unemployment. The CT DOL website is where I log-in to file my weekly claim.

It has never worked properly, George. As an individual with many, many years of IT background, I know it is just inexcusable for customers/website users to receive server errors.

Today, I received the error "Server is busy." I have, in the past, suggested to CT DOL that additional servers be added for the claim volume. Responses to me have been done in a timely fashion but always state the server errors are due to "high volume". Additional servers should have been added to this website ages ago.

I've attempted to log on at 12:01 A.M. as soon as the website comes up on Sunday morning also. Actually, I've tried every time of day imaginable. When the server is available, processing time is insanely slow.

I just tried to call in my weekly claim and, of course, I cannot get through that way either.

My husband and I are struggling as it is. This just brings so much more stress to our lives. We need the unemployment check. I don't feel I should have to attempt website log-ins and phone calls all day long.

The people who run the state's unemployment servers know their system is overburdened. Every singe one of those "Server too busy" errors you see on your own screen, becomes an entry in the Web site's error logs. When those error logs get large enough ... and they do, very quickly! ... someone is notified. It is news to no one who works for the state, that the unemployment-claim Web site is underpowered.

So complaining to them will accomplish nothing whatsoever. They are NOT unaware of the problem. It has been the case for months. This means they have made a conscious choice NOT to fix the problem.

Why would they do that, one might ask? The obvious reason is to discourage the unemployed from getting benefits. Just as you can't draw blood from a stone, you can't get paid your benefits by a non-functional system. This way they save the money they'd otherwise have to dole out, and spend it, instead, on ... well, who knows what? Certainly not on the unemployed.

Maybe they should use stimulus dollars to hire some IT people to fix this system. It is ridiculous and an embarrassment. Plus because of the forced day off after the holiday on Friday, unemployment is closed for 4 days and checks will be delayed. Government shouldn't be allowed to be closed for 4 days - if you can really be closed for 4 days then you aren't needed - Unemployment is needed.

this is ridiculous. it happens all the time. state employees are lazy and if anyone knew what they were doing that worked for the state this system could be fixed very easily..i agree 4 days off is too much..these people get all the benefits in the world and great pay compensation and are the most horrific people to work with when trying to resolve an issue..it is this entitlement attitude that they all have that has gotten us into this mess.

George, the system works fine it is simply overloaded on Sunday and Monday. If you file say on a Tuesday afternoon it takes only a few minutes and you will get what you need by Thursday, Friday at the latest. The thing needed by folks having a hard time using the system is patience. When they were working they waited until Friday to get paid for last weeks work. Why is that so hard now?
I will say one thing I have a problem with is the CT Job Central. This is where you click on to find jobs available. There are hundreds of jobs listed many by national brand companies. The problem is they list jobs multiple times and for months on end. You have to go through all the job description info, then when you get to the apply for job section, you are told we are not taking applications at this time. If they are not taking applications they should not be there. This is very time consuming and frustrating.

Unfortunately, I am out of state, trying to find what seems to be non-existant work. Besides the Bankers, I wonder who is getting the stimulas. If I can't file till Wed or Thursday, I won't get my check untill the next week. This really is too late, hard to survive if can't count on check by Friday. Problem is it takes the mail 3 to 4 days after the State mails it. Kind of sucks.

It is Monday morning at 3:10 AM. Upon trying to file my claim, knowing that it shouldn't allow me in because it is not during the normal hours, it still states "Server is busy." The best time that I have found to file my continued claim is around 3AM Sunday morning. I am able to file within a few minutes then.

Sunday, July 5th:
Users attempting to file via web continue to get a "SERVER IS BUSY" message while the telebenefits line states 'Call back at a later time' and hangs up. With the State on Holiday for the 4th on July 3rd and furlough July 6th because we don't have a budget, it looks like the earliest they'll get around to fixing the problem is Tuesday, July 7th, meaning recipient will be lucky to get their checks by Saturday, July 11th, if they're lucky. God help everyone that needs their money sooner and has already jumped through the many hoops the government has placed in their way.

Monday, July 6th, 8 am:
Following up on last nights email I tried again this morning at 6:45 am. The web site is still not able to accept submission, however, it actually bring up a whole page with a message explaining that volume is high and try again later or some other day (not just "server not responding"). I was able to access and file via the telebenefits line, however, I suspect that will be overloaded by 9 am. (Pardon by cynicism)

Monday, July 6th, 7 pm
My two cents on their technical issues: 1). the Internet line going in and out of DOL servers is too small. Upgrading to a larger volume line would be easy and not too expensive in the long run. 2). I suspect the servers being used are older technology and that the data being accessed and updated resides on different ones across their network. Basically, the system works fine for non-recession unemployment, but not very quickly for a recession. The state would do well to invest in their IT infrastructure instead of saving money in the short run by band aiding what they have.

Yes....I also have been having the same problem. Monday, July 6, has been designated as a furlough day and Department of Labor and the offices are closed. The agency is also closed Friday, July 3 for the Independence Day holiday, and will reopen on Tuesday, July 7. So here is the problem, bills don’t wait, creditors do not wait and rent doesn't wait. These are days of a crippling economy. The state of Connecticut is my only income for now. The State needs to realize that these are extraordinaire times, with the highest unemployment rate in years, 9.8 I believe, and will continue until there is a change in the economy to where it is up and running well again. This in my opinion won’t be for a few years. So far the State has done a great job helping me and others with programs to help with training and a steady unemployment pay, but every week counts and every pay counts. With these times on us all there should an available person to correct these problems and to keep the compensation flowing to the people in need, to pay their bills paid on time and to keep food on the table. I don’t want it to sound like I’m getting a handout just want to make sure I will be able to pay these things on time with a check that is on time. Thanks for listening.

Why is it that if your SSN ends in 0,1,2,3 you can file your first claim any day of the week, but others can not? What because mine ends in a 4 my bills can be paid later? Is my employer taxed less for my benefits?

Hi George,
Based on the high unemployment rate, we are advising that whenever possible, a person avoid filing a claim on Sundays due to the high volume of phone and web filing. The Labor Department is currently issuing approximately 140,000 unemployment checks a week, amounting to about $45 to $50 million. Of this number, about half of the claims are filed on Sundays.

On a recent week, we issued 136,667 benefit checks totaling $46,500,603. Of that number, on Sunday alone, 72,213 checks were issued, amounting to $24,940,075.

In addition to high unemployment rate and corresponding claims, we are currently in the middle of what is always our busiest time of the year. With schools closing for summer vacation we are processing new claims for laid off bus drivers, cafeteria workers and other support workers out of work for the summer who are all trying to file at once.

To assist claimants, we are asking people to be patient, try filing toward the end of the week rather than Sundays or Mondays, and suggest that if a person is calling, they dial as if they are dialing for concert tickets. If they can't get through on the phone, we have found this strategy to work -- hang up and immediately try calling again, repeatedly, until they get through. Regarding the servers, unfortunately, we are at capacity with the current system. The good news is that we are in the process of a federally-funded modernization program to upgrade the existing equipment. This upgrade is designed to handle more users, and make it easier and faster to make programming changes.

Nancy from CTDOL - thanks for the reply. I am also a very frustrated user of the system. Your analysis of a very overloaded system and the resultant impact to the users is spot on.
Please help reduce our frustration level by letting us know what we can expect for performance improvements. I would suggest a timeline or project plan that could be posted on the Unemployment site, along with a weekly update. By setting reasonable expectations and meeting your promises - a lot of frustrations will go away.
Thanks
Scott

Hi
I looked at at code on the web site. The code appears to be inefficient. In the course of one submission for a weeks worth of information it returns to the server many times. In addition, each web page is generated at the server at runtime using Microsoft ,Net ASP pages. The load on the computer could be significantly reduced by coding the pages using only HTML, Javascript and CSS (which it already uses), and not returning to the server until the session is compete. Reducing the round trips to the server would increase the responsiveness to the user and reduce the load on the server significantly.
Tom

Misery loves company, no? It doesn't REALLY make one feel better knowing that whole bunches of folks are in the same boat. Not only have I been experiencing the same delays in filing claims that others have (I use the Internet, as I am out-of-state living —gratefully— with relatives), but I have now been cut off from benefits, despite my Claims Status saying I have over $6000 in remaining benefits. When I have attempted to reach a live person, I have been told that the telephone system is experiencing overload (or words to that effect), told to call back at a later time and hung up on. Waiting for an operator is not even an option. At 54, with two college degrees and 30 years of experience, my frustration level is just about at a peak.

One thing that would help would be to at least allow us the option to hold during these "long wait times" the phone system warns us about before hanging up on us. I am unemployed. I can certainly listen to whatever lousy hold music the state wants to play for me for a couple of hours while I look for a new job. If I want to hang up and call back later, let that be my choice. The idea that I have to hit just the right moment like I am calling to win a radio contest is simply ridiculous.

I really love you people with the smart remarks about this being "our job" now or it's not like we have anything else to do or anyplace to be. Obviously you don't know what it is like to lose your job and how overwhelming everything becomes very quickly when you are struggling to support your family. I hope you never learn what both my husband and I have had to go through. All of us that are collecting unemployment benefits now have also paid in for years for this privelege. When the server is busy, it is not just a matter of minutes but hours and even days before you can file your claim and then you have to wait for the check to get sent out and received.

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